0041.

A few days late, but...

So I hope you guys will go check out the blog I wrote about Mocha Club's new campaign: I need Africa more than Africa needs me. If you want to know more, go to mochaclub.org or click the link after this excerpt.



I NEED AFRICA MORE THAN AFRICA NEEDS ME

When I think of Africa, the following images immediately come to mind: Starvation. AIDS. Child soldiers. Genocide. Sex slaves. Orphans. From there, my thoughts naturally turn to how I can help, how I can make a difference. “I am needed here,” I think. “They have so little, and I have so much.” It’s true, there are great tragedies playing out in Africa everyday. There is often a level of suffering here that is unimaginable until you have seen it, and even then it is difficult to believe. But what is even harder is reconciling the challenges that many Africans face with the joy I see in the people. It’s a joy that comes from somewhere I cannot fathom, not within the framework that has been my life to this day. {read more}





thanks for reading! :-)

0040.

Things I Can Attribute to Growing Up in the Valley:

1. My occasional ability to drive absent-mindedly
2. My inability to make new friends.
3. The bar set in my mind for something qualifying as "sketch" is very low.
4. My willingness to go play capture the flag in 35 degree weather.
5. My initial inferiority complex upon arriving at Belmont.
6. I am easily entertained.
7. I appreciate small town life.
8. I enjoy knowing most everyone. Most of the time...
9. I expect random people I encounter to be nice to me.
10. I expect random people I encounter to know my dad.
11. I have been in the paper umpteen times.
12. I played a varsity sport.
13. I have the best friends ever.

0039.

I need Africa more than Africa needs me.

I was asked by Mocha Club**{see bottom} to blog about why this is so.

I think this statement is one concerning joy.
I think our daily lives and American culture as a whole suffer from a lack of joy, and perhaps it is a result of a lack of trust in God to provide.
We often live, as Francis Chan puts it, as though God doesn't exist. Or at least as if we do not believe He does. This is what he means: we have back-up plans and savings accounts. We have Plan B's and "wiggle room" just in case. We are not often required to trust God.
We are not often required to put all our hope in God to provide.
Therefore, I think, we as a whole are lacking in joy. We don't leave much room for Him to work miracles. How much different would our lives be if we were not so comfortable?

How much more trusting would we be if God were the SOURCE of our life, in the most literal sense, rather than just a part of it?

This is why I believe I need Africa more than Africa needs me.

Now, I have never been to Africa. I can't wait to hear from my friend Jenny who just got back from Kenya. But I have been to Peru and Mexico in areas of extreme poverty. And I can tell you that the joy and generosity they exhibit squashes ours to bits. If they have three shirts, they want to give you one.
If they have a small shack, they want to invite you in.
This is why I believe I need Africa more than Africa needs me.

We can learn so much from their joy and their trust in the Lord. We can learn what it is to truly give.
God will come through for these people. These believers. We are not essential to the plan. Whether or not we choose to be a part of it His great story is secondary.
This is why I believe I need Africa more than Africa needs me.


Why do YOU believe that? Or why do you not believe that?
Share your thoughts in my comments or blog about it yourself! Join Mocha Club's effort to shift from and image of pity to an image of partnership.

Dec 1st there will be another post with some new info on what Mocha Club is doing & how you can help! To Be Continued...

**Mocha Club [www.themochaclub.org] is a community-based website where members can start a team and invite friends to join them in giving $7 a month – the cost of 2 mochas – to support a project in Africa. Mocha Club's vision is to provide a way for people who don't have hundreds or thousands of dollars to make a difference in Africa.